The head of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT), Bishop Alex Malasusa, has asked the government to enforce laws that control alcohol abuse. He said heavy drinking threatens the nation's workforce, Mwananchi reported. He spoke on Sunday at the opening of a new ELCT church at Nshara Machame in Kilimanjaro region.
Prime Minister Mwigulu Nchemba was the guest of honour and attended on behalf of President Samia Suluhu Hassan. Malasusa said heavy drinking, especially among young people, could weaken the workforce and slow national development. He appealed to the Prime Minister to find time to deal with the issue. "I have never seen a successful nation full of drunkards," he said, according to Mwananchi.
The bishop said drunkenness is among the causes cited in road accidents, which also harm other road users and their families. He urged parents to raise children with strong morals. He also said marriage disputes should be settled through dialogue, not violence that can end in death.
Former Chadema chairman Freeman Mbowe, who chairs the church's building committee, said some public servants discourage people's development efforts for political, religious and ideological reasons. He cited the Keep Kilimanjaro Beautiful project, which planted jacaranda trees along 47 kilometres in Hai constituency to boost tourism. Mbowe said the trees were planted at the organisers' cost, with permission from the Tanzania National Roads Agency (Tanroads).
According to Mbowe, some people claimed the project would benefit certain individuals politically. Power lines were then run over the trees, affecting their growth over 15 years, he said. He told the Prime Minister this was done so that he would not get credit.
In response, Mwigulu directed Kilimanjaro Regional Commissioner Nurdin Babu to meet stakeholders and find a solution for caring for the trees and the environment. He said environmental protection should not be linked to politics.
Mbowe said the church is also building a diocesan college focused on science and technology, including artificial intelligence. He said it aims for international standards and cited the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US as a model. There are also plans for a strategic partnership with MIT, he said.
Mwigulu said the government will keep working with religious institutions. He told Education Minister Professor Adolf Mkenda to work with the Health Minister on a cooperation plan for the college, to be presented to the President. He pledged TSh 50 million and said he would work with friends to raise it to TSh 100 million.